Florida Online Sports Betting

Florida is home to a number of betting possibilities for both land-based and online gamblers. Legal online betting options are available in Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) and Horse and Greyhound Racing. Traditional and Tribal casinos, ’cruise’ casinos (cruising to ‘nowhere’), jai alai betting and horse racing betting at the tracks dominate the realm of land-based betting in the state of Florida.

Presently, online sports-betting in Florida is not a possibility, however, given the state’s attitude with other forms of gambling and already with some operating forms of legal online betting, it can’t be too long again before the State’s lawmakers begin to seriously consider it as a viable option once more after the latest legislative push for legalization in 2021/22.

Look for the state’s Tribal casinos to lead the push to legalize sports wagering and possibly even online sports betting, like NJ online sports betting sites after a potential initial uptake in their bricks-and-mortar casinos.

Florida’s State Legislators have yet to rule on answers to the double-barrelled questions ‘is sports betting legal in Florida?’ and ‘is online sports betting legal in Florida?’ but appears to be only a matter of time until the lawmakers agree on how sports betting in Florida may be regulated and administered.

Watch this space for reports on the outcome of the rumoured debates to occur in the Florida State House this coming legislative season.

In the meantime, there are some limited land-based sports betting options In Florida. The one outstanding exception to Florida’s ban on land-based sports betting is jai alai. On a visit to one of the two jai alai frontons in Florida (Miami and Dania Beach) you can bet on the outcomes of the games 100% legally and the two jai alai venues operate and accept legal bets.

In Florida, Online Sports Betting is currently prohibited.

It’s important to note however, some State lawmakers in Florida have taken an interest in filling the state’s tax revenue coffers with receipts from legal online casino laws and gambling online in Florida.

The most recent effort to legalize sports betting in Florida came from SB 968 introduced into the State Senate in November 2019. That bill sought to authorize, license and regulate retail sportsbooks run by the state lottery and online betting offered by private operators.

The biggest obstacle that this bill (or any prospective sports betting bill that may follow it) will have to overcome is the ballot approved by Florida voters in 2018 that basically stopped the state legislature from authorizing any gambling expansion, including sports betting. However, the Seminole Tribe is looking to have that decision overturned as they seek ways to move forward on Florida sports wagering.

The legal loophole exists whereby the state statute of Florida’s gambling laws are actually a little unclear on the legality of gambling online. Given the unclear nature of the way the law is written, Florida’s lawmakers may well have the opportunity already to rule on legal online sports betting without being required to change the current laws. Time-will-tell as the legalization process of online sports betting unfolds in Florida.

For the time being, DFS, online betting on horse and greyhound racing and skills games are all legal ways for the online sports bettor to wager in Florida.

In terms of U.S. Federal Law legalization, Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) are totally exempt from any Federal gambling bans. DFS is determined by the nation’s Federal lawmakers to be contest of skill, rather than a gambling game of random chance and many state governments agree with the Federal ruling including Florida.

While Florida has no set laws determining that DFS is legal in the Sunshine State, it doesn’t set out to deliberately deem DFS illegal either.

In all attempts to formally pass DFS legalization bills in Florida (Bills S840, H223, and SB 374), the stumbling block has been to appease the Seminole Tribe whilst allowing DFS sites to operate.

Meanwhile, whilst Florida’s State Legislators and the Seminole Tribe thrash out the fine print, all the major DFS companies are able to legally accept players from the Sunshine State to participate in their real money DFS competitions.

With legal sports betting on the near horizon for Floridians, eSports betting will then assist players in the Sunshine State to win wagers in exciting new ways through never before seen betting markets that will create a brand-new revenue stream for the Florida State Government.

‘eSports’ explained

Loosely defined as professional ‘video game play at the top level’, eSports continues to grow and evolve and as to grows, it has given rise to betting and wagering on the outcomes of the rich and widespread tournaments.

eSports is now a massive industry, where pros play an official network of professional gaming tournaments and leagues playing games like CS:GO, FIFA 18/19 and Fortnite). Tracing its ancestral roots back to groups of close friends hosting LAN parties and taking part in video game ‘all-niters’, the eSports industry shows no signs of slowing down. The annual eSports market will cross the $1 billion per annum thresh-hold in 2018/19 and prizes get richer with each succeeding tournament and crowds pack eSports arenas worldwide.

Where there is big money to be made of course, a network of sports bettors and sportsbooks coincide. Sportsbooks worldwide now offer international betting markets across all the major global eSports tournaments.

Legal betting on eSports could possibly help Florida’s State Legislators in navigating the sports betting legalization process as the new form of ‘egalitarian’ sports betting is untouched by the past mistakes of traditional sports betting types.

Residents of, and visitors to the Sunshine State of Florida have an abundance of legal options for on course and off-track betting locations and online horse racing betting sites.

Trackside Betting

Assisted by the state’s sunny weather and warm temperatures, there are 13 Horse Racing tracks in the State of Florida and 7 live greyhound racing tracks.

Off Track Betting (OTB) in Florida

The State of Florida has a huge and extensive network of OTB locations throughout the Sunshine State. You are never more than approximately 40 minutes-drive from the nearest OTB in Florida.

Online Horse Racing in Florida

All major online horse racing betting sites operating in the United States accept customers from the Sunshine State of Florida and offer real money betting action on all the big U.S. races (Triple Crown, Arkansas Derby, Kentucky Derby etc.) and international horse racing for residents of Florida and the state’s many tourist visitors.

For Information on Florida’s Online Casino Laws Click Here